Newsletter
Week 7 Term 1

Students in Years 8 to 12 this week participated in formal learning conversations with their Form Tutors to encourage reflection on their academic performance and progress, and to support them in setting and achieving their goals.

Conversations have focused on students identifying at least one important thing they can target, making improvement possible and manageable.

We have learned much from students and Form Tutors who have engaged in past conversations and have matured the program to ensure it is differentiated and sequenced appropriately for each year level.

In Year 8, the conversations were guided through the lens of the Learning Improvement Plans all students have created as part of their Applied Thinking studies.

Time was spent identifying personal learning objectives and the strategies for achieving them which were discussed and productively challenged by their Form Tutors.

Year 9 students first examined the extent to which they are using the time afforded to them in the daily Consolidation and Preparation lesson, to support their development as a self-directed learners.

After completing a self-assessment of their attitude and effort, the results were visualised in a rubric for each student which they were asked to reflect on in advance of their conversation with their Form Tutor.

The focus was on identifying where they should direct future effort to build learning capacity.

The Year 10s used the results from their Me-as-a-Learner survey, which were displayed on a radar plot showing learning strengths and areas where growth is possible.

They were asked to identify which learning skills they will focus on and the specific actions that will support that endeavour.  

For Year 11 students, the learning conversations logically focused on the boys’ transition to senior studies and the explicit actions they will take to build a strong foundation in Semester 1.

They were asked to envision where they want to be at the end of their studies and focus on the learning attitudes and behaviours that will help them to get there.

Finally, for our Year 12s who are at the pointy end of school business there was a very practical focus on the feedback and feedforward comments they have recently received.

Looking across their assessment experiences, they were asked to identify what they need to work on to improve their learning.

Importantly, as self-regulating learners they were asked to make a commitment as to how, when and where they will make this change happen.  

While the stimulus and focus for each year level was different, there was a common thread to ensure conversations are linked over time and are developmental.

At all year levels, Form Tutors encouraged students to take ownership of their learning and to develop strategies to plan and evaluate their own progress – two capacities often identified in educational research as having a significant influence on student outcomes.

Parents can support their son (and the Form Tutors) this week by asking him about his learning conversation, specifically what he has identified as his target for improvement and, most importantly, the actions he will take to achieve it.

Checking in with him periodically is also helpful, as is using language that focuses on the process of learning and not the product or something to get done quickly and tick off as completed.

When our students are effective thinkers and learners focused on the journey, positive outcomes become the result.

While Form Tutors will stay in regular informal contact with students about the progress they are making on the goals, this formal school-wide engagement in learning conversations will be repeated again next semester to ensure ongoing reflection and adjustment as the year progresses.

The publication of the 2022 BGS Magazine has been delayed due to unforeseeable impacts to the production process.

We apologise to our school community, and we are working hard to finalise the magazine and have it delivered to our families as soon as possible.

BGS asks parents and caregivers to remind their children to remain aware and alert when arriving and leaving campus. 

Boys should remove earphones and take the necessary precautions while crossing roads during the hours before and after school.

The School has also received several complaints from residents of Spring Hill about the congestion around Gregory Terrace during pick-up and drop-off hours.

We ask BGS families to be mindful of our Spring Hill community as they move through the drop off zone at the front of the School.

A reminder to adhere to the following procedures:

• The front entrance between the traffic lights and the passenger loading zone is to be kept clear. It is not to be used as a waiting area before 3.15pm pick-up.
• Cars can enter the passenger loading zone to pick-up and drop-off passengers before 8.30am and after 3.15pm.
• Do not exceed the 5km speed limit in the pick-up and drop-off zone.
• Pay attention to traffic controllers and security guards – they keep our community safe and deserve our respect and cooperation.
• Exercise patience and courtesy towards other drivers.
• Please move as far as possible into the pick-up and drop-off zone to ensure efficient traffic flow.
• For safety reasons, please do not pick-up or drop-off your son before the pedestrian crossing at the entrance to the zone.
• The pick-up and drop-off zone has a two-minute parking limit. Drivers must stay with their vehicle during this time.
• The staff car park on off of Kalinga Avenue is not a designated drop-off or pick-up zone for students.

Thank you for your cooperation.

I am currently dog sitting my niece’s 18-month-old red cattle dog, Donny.

My niece has done such a great job training Donny. He has excellent routines and is a delight to have around the house. He responds consistently to situations because of his training.

I am not suggesting that our children are like Donny, but I do recognise that both benefit from establishing good routines.

Term 1 is a busy time for both staff and students and I hope the establishment of good routines earlier in the term are benefiting your son as they prepare for the final rounds of Term 1 Cocurricular and the upcoming assessment.

It is never too late to assist boys in this space. When reflecting on your son’s routines I ask that you consider his sleeping patterns as well. Adolescent boys need good sleep patterns.

Catching up on sleep in the holidays is not good practice. Without enough quality sleep, learning and performance are disadvantaged. I encourage you to think about how your son is managing this and intervene if required.

I encourage you to consider how you model good sleep patterns for your children, and to discuss sleeping patterns with the parents of your son’s friends.

Peer groups are very influential on each other. If you develop a pattern with your son’s friendship group, it will very likely impact your son’s thinking.

Student Voice

We spend a good deal of time in boarding talking about an ‘us’ mindset and about our ‘boarding community’.

These words reflect our commitment to encouraging a distinct student voice that shapes the culture in Griffith House and Harlin House.

We know from experience that our boys are at their best when they sense that they have a role to play in shaping the community.

This week, for the first time this year, we have opened formal channels for the boys to share ideas.

The Food Committee and the Boarders’ Council are both well-established elements of the termly calendar.

Providing a means for students to give feedback regarding the catering provision and to present ideas for the wider community are central to the evolution of the program.

This year we have added an Overseas Forum to assist those joining BGS from overseas, and to assist boys who call Brisbane or Queensland home to develop a truly global perspective in their education.

In many ways, we have never done more to assimilate new boarders – specifically overseas boys – to our community.

The Positive Transitions program has seen the evolution of the on-boarding process for a better term and with the orientation week at the heart of the offering, I often notice how integrated our students are and how the friendships formed through a myriad of events are both long-lasting and central to the sense of connection.

However, there is always more we can do. I very much look forward to working with the Overseas Forum to better understand their ideas for how we can prepare boys for life in Australia, and for how we can continue to celebrate our diverse community and ensure that each and every boy feels valued as a boarding student.

Key Dates

As we reach the end of Week 7, I want to take this opportunity to remind all families of the arrangements for the upcoming Easter vacation.

Classes will end on Friday 31 March at 3.10pm. With various assessments scheduled at the end of term, Boarding will remain open, if required, until 12.30 pm on Saturday 1 April.

Parents wishing to arrange travel for their son on the Saturday are asked to provide end of term travel details as soon as possible.

Travel to Brisbane Airport on Friday and Saturday will be provided, or enabled, by Boarding wherever possible.

Boarding will re-open for students on Monday 17 May at 12.30pm. Should your son return before that time please email the Director of Boarding prior to the end of term so that we can explore what arrangements can be made.

Classes will commence on Tuesday 18 May at 8.20am.

Berian Williams-Jones
Director of Boarding

Beyond Grammar Masterclasses

This year our Beyond Grammar tertiary program looks to provide a number of Masterclass and small group sessions for Year 12s.

Masterclasses will take place in the Forum at lunchtimes and explore big picture application issues relating to areas of:

• Business, Management and Commerce
• Law, Society and Culture
• Medicine and Health Sciences
• Engineering and IT
• Natural and Physical Sciences
• Architecture and Design and Creative Industries

We hosted our first Masterclass today for students interested in Business, Commerce & Management. This is a very popular area with many of our graduates heading towards Advanced Finance and Economics (BAFE), Advanced Business, Commerce, Economics, Business and Business Management degrees.

Beyond Grammar Small Group Workshops

Small group workshops will take place for a maximum of six students per group where the student counsellors will explore the study areas above in finer detail. They will also afford students the chance to share their understandings about relevant degrees and entry options.

Bookings for the small group sessions will take place online across Terms 1 to 3 inclusive.

Students will use booking links provided via our Teams channel and are able to book into a session of interest offered by our counsellors. There are many sessions across the year, and plenty of scope for students to explore study areas.

University Clinical Aptitude Test (UCAT)

The UCAT ANZ was established to help universities achieve greater fairness in selection. Around 14,000 candidates sit the test each year as part of their application to courses in medicine, dentistry, and clinical sciences.

The University Clinical Aptitude Test (UCAT) is a computer-based admissions test, used by the UCAT ANZ Consortium of universities in Australia and New Zealand to help select applicants for their medical, dental and clinical science degree programs.

Details of the 2023 UCAT ANZ, including key dates and pricing, are available here.

Tax File Numbers

A Tax File Number (TFN) is a unique number issued by the Australian Tax Office (ATO). It is required for:

• Starting work (including part-time and casual jobs)

• Lodging a tax return
• Applying for Commonwealth Government financial assistance
• Applying for the Higher Education Loan Program (e.g. HECS-HELP, FEE-HELP) and VET Student Loans when commencing niversity, TAFE or college study.

The easiest way to get a TFN is to:

• Complete an online application form from the ATO website
• Print a summary of the application which includes the application reference number
• Make an appointment for an interview at a participating Australia Post Office
• Take the summary of your application and proof of identity to the interview within 30 days of completing the online for

Visit the Australian Taxation Office website for details about this process.

Year 12 students intending to apply for tertiary study in 2024 should apply for their TFN this year to avoid any delays early next year.

Dr Nathan Simmons
Director of Counselling and Academic Services

8E had an excellent week at Moogerah and were widely celebrated for their engagement in the program, the care and empathy shown towards their peers and the way the class demonstrated the behavioural objectives of the program.

The boys were confident and effective at working in both small and large groups on the tasks during the expedition. They relied on each other, and every student chose to continue the expedition to the summit of Mt Alford and take on this extra challenge as a class.

The conditions at the start of the week were hot and humid, this triggered a slightly modified program to avoid the worst of the heat, but thankfully the expedition day cooled and we enjoyed a couple of showers during the hike.

Zachy Yap was motivated, engaged, and determined. Zachy maintained a great attitude during every activity, kept the class morale high and showed some great leadership qualities during the group initiative activities.

Ojas Joshi was involved in every lesson, activity, and task. Ojas was positive and enthusiastic, and this attitude had a great impact on his peers.

Angus Cooper proved to be a strong navigator and supporter during the hike around the Scenic Rim intrusive complex and to the summit of Mt Alford. Angus was able to facilitate a discussion within his group, make thoughtful decisions and showed some great leadership qualities.

Jay Holland put a great effort into the bushwalk and took a strong leadership role during navigation. Jay showed initiative by volunteering to lead an extra section of the hike and paying close attention to the map.

James Keating was an excellent participant and contributor. James was an asset to his group during the expedition and showed a genuine interest in everything outdoors.

Year 11 Outdoor Education Leaders Robert Cochrane, Max Liberatore, and William Murphy took every opportunity to connect with the Year 8 boys and were thorough and effective in their role as mentors.

Ms Jenny Tap helped guide the boys through their experience and provided wonderful support when the class needed it most.

A short movie of the boys' experiences can be viewed via the 8E Video link.

Outdoor Education photos are now available via the School’s photo management system, Pixevety. The platform helps the School safely manage and share our photos.

This user guide provides instructions on how to access, navigate, search and download photos. The system uses single sign on and must be accessed via MyGrammar > Useful Links > Pixevety.

Once activated, you will be prompted to enter a login email and password, but please do not attempt to login this way. Instead, go back to MyGrammar and click on Pixevety again.

You can then view the photos by clicking on the Outdoor Education Year 5 or Year 8 folder in Pixevety.

Derek Jervis
Director of Outdoor Education

Guide Dog Ambassadors

On Wednesday 22 February, the 2023 BGS Guide Dog Ambassadors attended their annual launch afternoon event.

Staff from Guide Dogs Queensland joined BGS teachers and students for an informative and successful afternoon. Students enjoyed meeting the BGS sponsored puppy, Hope, and speaking with staff from Guide Dogs Queensland.

A highlight of the afternoon was when students were given the opportunity to try on vision googles and experience what it was like to be visually impaired, raising their awareness and motivating them to champion the cause even further.

Our Ambassadors have committed to a number of projects this year to continue to support Hope in her journey and training to become a guide dog.

If you would like to support their fundraising, please go CLICK HERE to donate to this worthwhile cause.

Harmony Week

The BGS community will celebrate Harmony Week in Week 9 (20-24 March 2023).

We are lucky to have a culturally diverse community and the Public Purpose students would like to celebrate this and the Harmony Week theme: ‘Everyone belongs’.

In Week 9, there will be events for students to participate in, including a photo competition and a Brisbane Grammar School Community Recipe Book.

If you would like to be involved, please use the links provided here to the Photo Competition and  BGS Recipe Book.

Thank you for your support.

Public Purpose Days of Significance Group

Harold and Agnes Richardson Drawing Prize

Year 12 student Harry Steedman and Year 11 student Lachie Elliott were both selected as finalists in the Harold and Agnes Richardson Drawing Prize 2023.

Year 11 Visual Art student Lachie Elliott received the Young Artist Excellence Award as part of the Harold and Agnes Richardson Drawing Prize.

Lachie’s drawing titled ‘Ficus Macrophylla’ (pictured below) is a testament to the fig trees outside the new STEAM Precinct.

Prize Judge Richard Blundell made comment that Lachie’s work exhibited “good observational drawing and cropping of the image provides a mature compositional element.”

As part of the Prize, Lachie was awarded a year-long membership to the Royal Queensland Art Society Brisbane Branch Inc, providing him many opportunities as an Art student in Queensland.

Commenting on his experience, Lachie said:

“Seeing my artwork professionally framed, in a gallery full of spectacular pieces, made me appreciate the greatness of opportunities that BGS has to offer. Not only that, but the supportive and kind teachers and staff that make these things happen. Thank you to my parents and my BGS Art teachers, Ms Mackintosh, Ms Masciantonio, Mr Varghese and Ms Kennedy-Levesque.”

Lachie’s drawing will be on exhibition at Petrie Terrace Gallery until Sunday 12 March.

Follow us on Instagram grammarart.bgs to view more examples of students’ exciting work.

Rebecca Masciantonio
Teacher of Visual Art and Design

Termly Pulse Checks

Over the past two weeks, Middle School students have completed our termly pulse check surveys.  

The pulse check is designed to provide a snapshot of how the boys are feeling, how well they are managing their academic responsibilities, how well they are sleeping and how connected they feel to their communities. 

The survey also asks the boys about bullying, respectful relationships and leadership, providing us with deeper insight into the School’s three cultural projects. 

Importantly, the data prompts dialogue between students and teachers and plays a crucial role in supporting our boys and maintaining a positive culture. 

GPS Swimming

Congratulations to all students who participated in last week’s GPS Swimming Championships. 

Although swimming is often regarded as an individual sport, it took a team effort to secure fourth place in the junior event and second place in the senior championships.   

High levels of school spirit were on display as our Year 6 cohort cheered on the junior swimmers at Chandler.  

Interim Reports and Three-Way Conferences

Interim reports will be made available to parents in Week 8. These reports provide insight into your son’s learning behaviours throughout Term 1. 

Students in Years 5 and 6 will receive an Interim report prepared by their Form Tutor. In addition to Form Tutor reports, students in Years 7 and 8 will also receive subject reports.   

Three-way conferences will take place in Weeks 9 and 10 for students in Years 5-7. 

The conferences allow teachers, students, and parents to reflect on the term to identify strengths and to discuss areas requiring further attention. 

Please refer to the correspondence sent earlier today for more information regarding bookings for three-way conferences.

The electronic booking system will be open from 14 March and close 4.00pm the day prior to each of the scheduled interview sessions. 

Parent Teacher interviews for Year 8 will occur early Term 2. 

Assessment Schedule

As we embark on the final three weeks of Term 1, it is important that students are prepared for any upcoming assessment. 

Assessment schedules are available on MyGrammar and should be checked regularly for updates.

NAPLAN

NAPLAN testing will commence on Wednesday 15 March and conclude on Wednesday 22 March. 

All students in Years 5, 7 and 9 will participate in online testing at various times throughout the course of the week.   

Please refer to the letter sent by Louisa Carr (Assistant Head of Middle School – Teaching and Learning) and Mark Schumann (Director of Assessment and Reporting) for important information relating to NAPLAN.

Congratulations to all of the Middle School boys who competed in the two GPS Swimming Championship events last Friday.

The junior team performed very well to place fourth, while the Years 7 and 8 boys were part of the senior team which came agonisingly close to winning back-to-back titles.

The 13 years team were outstanding contributing maximum points in winning both the Medley and Freestyle relays.

Special mention to Eugene Lee who was arguably our swimmer of the meet, winning three individual events and a relay. A remarkable achievement.   

The Winter Sport registration survey is now closed. Parents who missed the opportunity to enrol their boys for an activity may still register them now by emailing the person in charge of that activity directly. 

However, numbers may already be at capacity at this stage and there is no guarantee of a position in some of the programmes where places in a GPS team are very competitive.

The contact details of the various program leaders can be found on MyGrammar.   

As season end approaches for our Term 1 activities, boys in Middle School team sports will be asked to vote for their Players’ Player award recipient. 

These peer-voted awards are recognition for the boys in our programs who regularly display our school values, and the recipients should be very proud of their achievements.

These awards are presented on our final Assembly for the term in Week 9 and parents are invited to attend.

The Middle School Track and Field Carnival will be held at Northgate on the final day of Term 1. A nomination survey and detailed instructions will be sent home early next week. 

This event is about fun and participation and boys are encouraged to nominate for as any events as possible in order to win points for their Wing.   

Cricket

Results: Round 6 vs Ipswich Grammar School

TEAM	WON BY
5A	BGS
5B	BGS
5C	BGS
5D	BGS
5E	GT
6A	BGS
6B	BGS
6C	ACGS
7A	BGS
7B	BGS
7C	BGS
7D	BGS
7E	GT
8A	IGS
8B	BGS
8C	BGS
8D	BGS
8E	BGS
8F	BGS

Cricket Player of the Week

Team	Name
5A	Mahin Singh
5B	Elijah Rodins
5C	Alec Hewson
5D	Sriram Potluri
5E	Shreyans Maturu
6A	Marcus Swan
6B	William Creighton
6C	Fraser Bell
7A	Adam Johansen
7B	Luka Rodins
7C	Alistair MacKenzie
7D	Harrison Coyne-House
7E	Krish Kotapati
8A	Edward Mulholland
8B	Archie Slatter
8C	Liam Duncan
8D	Liam McClelland
8E	Aryan Mandhan
8F	Lachlan May

Debating

Results: Round 6 vs IGS

TEAM	WON BY
5.1	BGS
6.1	BGS
6.2	BGS
7.1	BGS
7.2	BGS
7.3	IGS
8.1	BGS
8.2	BGS
8.3	BGS

Debater of the Week

Year Level	Name
5	Tom Taylor
6	Max Woods
7	Malakai Wong
8	Jasper Chin Moody

Sailing

Sailor of the Week

Year Level	Name
7	Daniel Kurian
8	Flynn Symons

Volleyball

Results: Round 6 vs IGS

TEAM	WON BY
5A	BGS
5B	ACGS
5C	BGS
6A	BGS
6B	ACGS
6C	BGS
7A	BGS
7B	BGS
7C	BGS
7D	BGS
7E	BGS
8A	BGS
8B	BGS
8C	IGS
8D	ACGS
8E	ACGS

Volleyball Player of the Week

Year Level	Name
5A	John Myers
5B	Alex Tsai
5C	Daniel Bahri
6A	Eddie Poll
6B	Sonny Macfarlane
6C	Marlin Ngo
7A	Digby Harpham
7B	Jordan Redburn
7C	Lachlan Tan
7D	Riyaz Paudyal
7E	Thomas Isles
8A	Harry Findlay
8B	Billy Rogers
8C	Felix Mole
8D	Michael Tsai
8E	Julian Chin

Glenn McFarlane
Assistant Head of Middle School - Sport and Activities

Our Round 6 opponent was Ipswich Grammar School. I am pleased to report that our boys only dropped four GPS matches on their way to recording 14 wins out of 18 fixtures contested.

Our A level teams won four out of eight games respectively, with the First XI recording successive victories and the entire Year 12, 7, 6 and 5 cohorts recording victories in their GPS matches.  

Out of the 34 matches played across the round, BGS won 25.

There were some excellent achievements across the day with 14 half-centuries and three partnerships of over 100 runs.

We also had another five-wicket haul to take the season total to five. However, we are still chasing that elusive century.

With two rounds to go, our 5B, 7A, 7C, 8D, 8F, 9C and 11C teams are undefeated while the 5A, 7D and 11B teams are leading their divisions.

Round 7 is against our neighbours Gregory Terrace. This will provide us with a great opportunity to demonstrate the strength of our program.

Team of the Week

BGS 6A 8/204 def IGS 6A 10/128

In an excellent all-round team performance, our 6A team batted beautifully well in partnerships to amass 8/204 off their 30 overs.

Angus Hart 47* (37), Thomas Rose 38 (24) and Marcus Swan 50* (34) all scored freely and were the pick of the batters.

The bowling honours were then shared amongst the team with 5 bowlers each picking up a wicket along with some excellent catching and ground fielding to dismiss IGS for 128. Yevin DeSilva finished with 3/12 (3) and Thomas Rose took 2/9 (2).

Congratulations boys. The ice blocks were well deserved!

Player of the Round

Ed Mulholland, who was recently promoted to the 8A team, achieved his first five wicket haul, taking 5/16 off six overs.

Congratulations Ed, hopefully the wickets keep coming!

There were some other excellent performances across the weekend:

• Will Siddle continued his good form with 70 runs and two wickets for the 4th XI;
• Adam Johansen (81) and Aamay Wadhwani (63) shared in our season’s highest partnership of 143 runs in their 7A match; and
• Vedant Modak (6B) took 4/3 off two overs, including two caught and bowled wickets.

Best of luck to all teams competing this weekend against Gregory Terrace.

Trevor Irvine
Director of Cricket

Recently, the cast of An Experiment with The Caucasian Chalk Circle had the privilege of working with London-based performance artist, Alex Gomar.

With a wealth of Physical Theatre knowledge and experience, he took the actors through their paces, both literally and metaphorically. He blocked and taught a powerful sequence, which is to be a pivotal moment of the play. 

Alex was thoroughly impressed by the professionalism and focus of the actors, and as requested, will be receiving regular updates on how the production is progressing.

Complex movement sequences are a highlight of this production, and the cast is going from strength to strength in rehearsals learning and refining choreography.

The diverse soundtrack that accompanies these moments will have something for everyone in our Grammar audience.

Make sure you grab your tickets when they go on sale in a few weeks’ time – stay tuned!  

The Creative Team

This year the annual Senior School Faith Fellowship Group (FFG) camp will be held at Somerset Dam during the second week of the upcoming Easter holidays (Tuesday 11 April to Friday 14 April).

The camp caters for students in Years 9 to 12. Middle School camps will be held during the first week of the September holidays, including both Moogerah residential and day camp options.

Further details for the Middle School camps will be provided closer to the time.

Senior School FFG is coordinated by Ms Noel Chan; Middle School FFG by Mr Ian Grice.

FFG provides a fun, positive and inclusive community in which students can explore deeper life questions in a non-denominational context.

Discussions are driven by student interest and include but are not limited to religious ideas. Students of any or no particular faith can take part in whichever age-appropriate activities they would like to, no matter their personal beliefs.   

Forms with full details of the camp can be downloaded from the FFG activity tile on MyGrammar (Cocurricular Section).

This tile also contains the link to use to register students for the camp. An early-bird discount applies for registrations prior to 10 March 2023.

All registrations should occur by Friday 24 March, with further details and permissions procedures to be provided electronically during the last week of term.

QFA Open Circuit I State Competition

On Saturday 4 March, 10 Grammar fencers took part in the first open level State Championship of the year, at Yeronga.

Although no Grammar fencers took part in the epee event, our sabreurs and foilists did very well.  

In sabre, Lucas Lu came third, showing that his place in the First IV Sabre team last year was beneficial to his fencing.

Vikram Kumar put in an excellent performance to finish seventh, but the announcement of exceptional talent and promise came from Aiden Seo (Year 7) who shared third place with Lucas. 

Our junior foilists Armand Hamilton, Ben Anderson and Ryan Coudroy-Ling had their first experience of a full range of opponents from willy veterans to Australian ranked adults and high-flying juniors.

They performed very well coming home in 16th, 17th and 18th place respectively. Our more senior fencers Theo Chan and Will Yuen ended up in 6th and 12th place, proving them both to be in a very strong position when the First IV Foil team trials are held later this term. 

But the outstanding efforts of the day were by Daylin Johnson and Hanbi Seo who contested the final of the Men’s Foil event.

The long format bout was held in 30-degree heat, firstly with Hanbi leading but then with Daylin catching up.

After some powerful attacks, Hanbi closed in on victory at 14-12. But Daylin lifted and pressed home two more hits to equalize at 14-14.

The last hit went (this time) to Hanbi who took the gold medal 15 hits to 14, in one of the most skilful and closely contested finals seen in years. 

Congratulations to all fencers who placed at the QFA Open Circuit I State Competition this weekend. 

Open Men’s Foil

Gold: Hanbi Seo (Year 10)
Silver: Daylin Johnson (Year 9)
6th place: Theo Chan (Year 11)
12th place: Will Yuen (Year 10)
16th place: Armand Hamilton (Year 9)
17th place: Ben Anderson (Year 9)
18th place: Ryan Cowdroy-Ling (Year 9)

Open Men’s Sabre

Gold: Will Beckey (coach)
Bronze (tie): Aiden Seo (Year 8)
Bronze (tie): Lucas Lu (Year 10)
7th place: Vikram Kumar (Year 9)

Also at the event were our coaches Daniel Grother, David McFadyen, Paul Crook, Donghwan Kim, and Alan Wang. 

It is great to see those who fence outside of school fixtures, and many of them competing well above their age category in the Opens.

Melanie Chin
Director of Fencing

Year 5 Music Immersion Launch

We would like to extend a special invitation to parents/guardians of all Year 5 students to attend the launch of the 2023 Music Immersion Program.

This will be held in The Lilley Centre on Friday 17 March from 5.30pm to 6.00pm

As you know, all Year 5 boys will soon receive confirmation of what their special instrument will be for 2023. They are very excited!

We want you as the most significant supporters of these young musicians to come and meet the staff who will be taking your sons on their musical journey.

There will be challenges along the way and so we want to give you some information about what to expect, what the boys will be asked to do and how you can help them.

Following this short presentation, you are invited to move to the Great Hall to enjoy some drinks and refreshments from 6.00pm at the Music Support Group Welcome Function and Music Soiree. 

Music Soiree

Are you new to the BGS music community and keen to find out more about what will be on offer in 2023?

Would you like to share a drink and some conversation with friends while being entertained by our wonderful student musicians?

If this is the case, set aside Friday 17 March for our Music Soiree. This FREE event will be held in the Great Hall from 6.00pm to 7.15pm.

It will be very relaxed with the Great Hall in entertainment mode, allowing you to mingle with other members of the BGS Music Community.

Throughout the function there will be the opportunity to find out a little more about what is in store for 2023 while enjoying some excellent food and drinks.

There will also be several performances by some of our choirs, Chamber Strings and soloists.

So, whether you are new to the program or been involved for a while, the Soiree has plenty to offer!

Prior to this event, there will be a launch of the 2023 Year 5 Immersion Program so it will be a great chance to meet new people and to learn more about Music at BGS.

CLICK HERE to register for the Music Support Group Soiree. RSVP by no later than Tuesday 14 March.

Peter Ingram
Head of Music

This weekend, BGS Rowing will participate in the GPS Rowing Championships, The Head of the River.

The event will be held on Saturday 11 March at the Queensland Rowing Centre, Wyaralong Dam.

CLICK HERE for the official program.

Watch the live stream on ClutchTV from 8.10am.

The 2023 GPS Swimming season concluded last Friday with many excellent performances from both our junior and senior swimmers.

Our junior team placed a very commendable fourth and our Senior team recorded an extremely close second in another tightly fought GPS Championships.

It was an exciting morning for the BGS boys at Junior GPS this year. As a team we had 48 personal best times. We had many podium finishes with highlight performances from Heath Evans, Mason Jia and Nick Bourne who had wins in their respective events.

The depth of the team was demonstrated through strong performances in the relays. Our 10 & Under and 12 & Under Freestyle and Medley relays all finished in the top three places.

We must also congratulate Mason Gao and Lachlan Donaldson for swimming up an age group into the GPS Championships. These boys helped the 13 & Under Freestyle Relay win their event during the afternoon – a most commendable effort by the boys.

Junior GPS Championships First Placegetters

Name	Event
Heath Evans	10 & U 50 Breaststroke Division 3
Mason Jia	10 & U 50 Freestyle Division 8
Nick Bourne	12 & U 50 Freestyle Division 3

 

This was a very admirable result by our Junior GPS swimming team, and I congratulate the team on the way they conducted themselves at the Championships.

With one of the largest armies of Grammar supporters cheering on the BGS swimmers, the highly anticipated GPS Championship promised to be an exhilarating and close competition.

Many fast individual swims from all the GPS schools meant that the battle remained very close throughout the meet. Hamish Lilley from Year 8 performed extremely well in the inaugural multi-class 50m Freestyle and 50m Backstroke events for the GPS Championships.

Eugene Lee, from our youngest age group, swam an outstanding race to record our first victory of the afternoon, posting a winning time of 27.65 in the 13 & Under 50m Freestyle. This served to inspire confidence in the rest of the team.

A few races later, Ronan Mellick put on a masterclass in how to step up and race by winning the Open 50m Freestyle in a time of 24.49. Samuel Zhang came first in the 14 & U 50m Backstroke and Max Gao won the 15 & U 50m Breaststroke. Eugene Lee also went on to win the 13 & U 50m Butterfly and 200m Freestyle.

We went into the relays with Nudgee leading, closely followed by three other schools, including BGS, GT and TSS. Our relay swimmers once again performed superbly, with most boys recording personal best times in their individual leg of the relay.

Our 13 & Under swimmers had an outstanding meet, winning both the Medley and Freestyle relays. This was followed by outstanding wins by our 14 & Under, 15 & Under, and 16 & Under Medley Relays.  

Although we saw many outstanding performances during the afternoon and we came agonisingly close on a few occasions during the meet to take the lead, it was not quite enough to catch a powerful Nudgee team on the points table.

During the meet, all of those present witnessed a tremendous team effort by BGS that showed individual talent and team depth. Special mention must go to the following first placegetters during the Championships. 

GPS Championships First Placegetters

Name	Event	Time
Eugene Lee	13 & U 50m Freestyle	27.65
	13 & U 50m Butterfly	29.34
	13 & U 200m Freestyle
Samuel Zhang	14 & U 50m Backstroke	29.78
Max Gao	15 & U 50m Breaststroke	31.16
Ronan Mellick	Open 50m Freestyle	24.49
Marcus Raine, Max Wang, Eugene Lee, Lexer Wynn	13&U 4x50m Medley Relay	2:10.24
Mason Gao, Will Skerman, Ashley Boutcher, Leo Ellemor, Lachlan Donaldson, Joshua Spiez	13&U 6x50m Freestyle Relay	2:59.23
Samuel Zhang, Callum Deacon, Matthew Nathan, Tommy Elliott	14&U 4x50m Medley Relay	1:59.96
Cashy Luo, Max Gao, Declan Simpkins, Sean Dwyer	15&U 4x50m Medley Relay	1:55.01
Jacob Raine, Kyan Bigby, Charlie Lutton, Roc Palmos Woodhouse	16&U 4x50m Medley Relay	1:51.67

After the relays, the final placings for the GPS Championships were as follows. Nudgee College, 303 points. BGS, 296 points, Gregory Terrace, 242 points. An excellent result for BGS Swimming, once again.

I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate all swimmers for an outstanding and memorable season. Well done to our captains Seb Roy-Bryant and Ed Rimmington and the entire senior squad for their superb leadership of the GPS swimming team in 2023.

Thank you to all of the parents who have supported BGS swimming throughout the year, and to the BGS spectators who were in the stand on Friday.

Finally, to our Director of Coaching, Mr Bobby Jovanovich, Coordinator of Middle School Swimming, Mr Daniel Sainsbury, our extraordinary panel of coaches, Old Boys and support staff who have given up many hours of their time to ensure that the BGS swimming team recognised their full potential this season, I extend my sincerest thanks to all involved.

Matt Logan
Swimming Director

Grammar Shop Trading Hours

OPEN: Monday - Friday 7.30am–11.00am

CLOSED: All public and school holidays.

The Grammar Shop will be closed on Wednesday 1 March 2023 from 8.30am to 10.00am due to the P&F Auxiliary Annual General Meeting.

Important Reminder for Year 9 Winter Uniform Purchase

Many Year 9 students are coming to the Grammar Shop on their own to purchase their blazer and white shirts and not having sufficient funds on their BGS ID card. 

Please ensure to top up your son’s ID card and take any daily limits off prior to them coming to the shop.

The blazers are priced at $315 and the white shirts are $30. 

Payment and Grammar Shop Online Orders

Grammar Shop purchases can be made in-store and online using Visa, Mastercard or the BGS Card account, which can be accessed (MyGrammar > BGS Card).

The online store can be accessed by entering the BGS Card system and then clicking the ‘Grammar Shop Online’ link at the top of the screen. Please allow a minimum of 24 hours before coming to the shop to collect your order. 

A significant number of students are still coming to the Grammar Shop without sufficient funds on their BGS Card. Please ensure funds are available for students before they come to make purchases. If you have selected a 'daily limit' for the BGS Card account, this will need to be removed prior to the student making the purchase. 

Uncollected Online Orders Policy

In the event items are not collected within three months of the on-line purchase date, the shop will refund the value of the items to the student's BGS Card and items returned to shop stock.

Blazer Submission for Award Embroidery

With Term 1 well underway, we thought it best to advise senior students of the schedule and process for submitting blazers for embroidery, as there have been some changes to prior years. 

The final cut-off date for blazer submission before the winter uniform season is Friday 24 March 2023 (Week 9). 

It is important for everyone to understand that there can be no exceptions to this date. 

We are working very closely with Hi Profile, our embroiderer, to ensure they have enough time to complete all the submitted blazers to be ready in time for the winter uniform commencement. 

YEAR 12 STUDENTS IN TERM 1 FLAGSHIP TEAMS: Your yellow Awards Forms will be handed out directly to you after the awards have been finalized during the week of 20 March 23. If you wish to get your blazer embroidered, please bring the form with your blazer to the Grammar Shop by Friday 24 March before school. 

YEARS 10-12 (not in Term 1 flagship teams): If you have outstanding awards you wish to be embroidered, please go to the Cocurricular Office to have your Awards Form printed. Bring the form with your blazer to the Grammar Shop before shop closing at 11.00am. We ask that this is done sooner than later to avoid last minute rush, possibly missing the cut-off date. 

YEAR 9: This is the first year you will be wearing blazers and most of you will still need to go to the Grammar Shop to purchase. If you have awards to be embroidered, please go to the Cocurricular Office to get your Awards Form printed and bring that with you when you come to the Grammar Shop to purchase your blazer. We ask that you start this process soon and not wait until the last week to avoid the rush and missing the cut-off date. 

Our goal is to have all blazers back in the Grammar Shop before or, at the latest, by Wednesday 26 April 23.  

Returned Embroidery

Please go to MyGrammar | P&F Auxiliary | Embroidered Blazer/Item Pick up list to check whether your blazer or other embroidered items are ready to be picked up. We appreciate you collecting these items as soon as possible. Click HERE to see the list.

Stylus Pens

The Grammar Shop sells HP G3 stylus pens for $130 for Years 7-12 and the Dell tablet pen. These pens can be used on all tablets, including Toshiba tablets.

Tuckshop 

Open weekdays before school and during breaks.

The Tuckshop provides a selection of hot food, fresh salads, wraps, rolls and drinks.

The Tuckshop is currently operating cash free. Therefore, the BGS Student ID Card is the only payment method. Please add funds to your Student ID Card (MyGrammar > MyStudent > BGS Card).

Tuckshop +61 7 3834 5229
Grammar Shop +61 7 3834 5347
Roster Secretary Emma Kelso - auxiliaryvolunteers@brisbanegrammar.com

BGS Cricket will be fundraising for the the McGrath Foundation this Saturday 11 March. 

All money raised goes towards funding McGrath Breast Care Nurses to help families experiencing breast cancer.

CLICK HERE to donate.

The Brisbane Grammar School Parents’ and Friends’ Association (Inc.) (“BGS P&F”) will hold its Annual General Meeting on Tuesday 28 March 2023 at 6.00pm in The Lilley Centre Function Room.

P&F Association parent members (all parents and guardians of students currently attending Brisbane Grammar School) and friend members (those accepted as a member following application) are entitled to attend and vote.

All are eligible to nominate for positions on the Management Committee. 

The voluntary positions of President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer will be declared vacant.

Nominations must be returned by email to the P&F Management Committee Secretary, Andrea McDonald by 5.00pm, Thursday 23 March 2023 for the nomination to be proposed at the AGM.

Nomination forms for these positions may be obtained here.

Further enquiries should be directed to the P&F Management Committee Secretary at andrea.mcdonald@uandu.com.

Save the date

The BGS Art Support Group is excited to announce that the 54th BGS Art Show will be held with the Gala on Friday 5 May and a viewing on BGS Open Day (Saturday 6 May).

Tickets for the Gala Evening go on sale soon.

The BGS Art Show is a whole School and wider-community event. Attendees will have the opportunity to purchase from more than 200 works from local, national and international artists, ranging from paintings, drawings and ceramics to mixed media, sculpture, jewellery and more. 

Visit the BGS Art Show website for more information and stay up to date on ticketing by following us on Instagram and Facebook.

The BGS Sportsman’s Lunch is back! This year, it will be held on Friday 21 July at the Rivershed at Howard Smith Wharves.

Now is the time to grab your mates and get a table together. You'll enjoy a long lunch from 11.30am and be entertained by a highly anticipated panel discussion.  

Speakers and MC will be announced soon.

The BGS Sportsman's Lunch is open to everyone in the BGS Community: partners, current parents, past parents, future parents, coaches, volunteers, staff, Old Boys, friends and business associates.

CLICK HERE for early bird tickets.

Parents of BGS Gymnasts are warmly invited to attend the next meeting for the Men’s Artistic Gymnastics Supporters (MAGS) Group.

The meeting will be held in the Indoor Sports Centre (in the classroom opposite the weights room) on Monday 13 March at 5.45pm.

To RSVP or for any general enquiries, please contact Karuna Hoole or Arianne Nucifora from the MAGS Support Group: mag.support@brisbanegrammar.com.

With the 2023 GPS Football season fast approaching, the Wembley Club is seeking volunteers to convene the Northgate canteen for the four home game days in Term 2.

This volunteer role does not require previous canteen experience and will be supported by the Wembley Club. It can be either a full or half day.

For further enquires please email the Wembley Club committee on Wembley.Support@brisbanegrammar.com